1. Field of the Invention
The present disclosure relates to an image processing method and an apparatus thereof for processing an image in a camera device or a portable device including a camera module. More particularly, the present invention relates to an image processing method and apparatus that minimizes a delay time until the image is detected and captured.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, a camera device or a portable terminal (hereinafter referred to as ‘portable device’) including a camera module is becoming better able to provide a higher quality images and/or various user convenience functions. The portable device having a shooting function by a camera module may detect images having full HD resolution or greater through an image sensor (or camera sensor).
In addition, the portable device displays an image detected from the camera sensor as a preview image in a preview mode. If the user presses a shutter button, the preview image is captured. In this case, the portable device detects, captures, processes, and stores an image acquired from the image sensor in a memory in response to the shutter button input, and there is a delay time (e.g., shot to preview time) from the storage termination of the image in a memory to a next possible shooting time (that is, from input of the shutter button to next possible shooting time for another photo). The delay time may be generated due to the influence of a shooting environment of a subject and an image processing power. Accordingly, the user must wait next shooting until image processing is terminated according to the delay time. Thus, when one wants to take a series of successive photos, this delay is inconvenient and can inhibits capturing the subject at various successive times, which may be desirable of the subject or something else is in motion. Further, recently, the image of the subject may be captured by setting various shoot options according to a user setting. For example, the user may set a sketch effect, a shade effect, a distortion effect, a synthesis effect, an animation effect, a black and white effect, a vignetting effect, composition variation and background variation for improving image quality, panorama shooting to perform shooting. The image shot according to the shooting option may be achieved by processing image conversion as a shooting option set to a full captured image is post-processing compensated. Accordingly, a delay time from an input of a shutter button by the user to next possible time where an image can be captured when shooting according to shooting option setting in the portable device is significantly increased as compared with general shooting. Accordingly, the user must inconveniently wait for the end of a time period that is longer than usual for capturing images with certain post-processing compensation than when generally shooting images with selecting additional options.